The Answer Sheet: On Common Core


Posted at 03:13 PM ET, 05/13/2013

Indiana halts Common Core implementation
By Valerie Strauss
Indiana is postponing implementation of the Common Core initiative so that there can be more discussion on the quality and impact of the standards.

By Valerie Strauss  |  03:13 PM ET, 05/13/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core Standards, New Hearings Ahead

Posted at 09:43 AM ET, 05/12/2013

Gates gives $150 million in grants for Common Core Standards
By Valerie Strauss
For a supposedly public initiative, the Common Core States Initiative has benefited enormously from the generosity of Bill and Melinda Gates.

By Valerie Strauss  |  09:43 AM ET, 05/12/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  A Major Investment, Common Core State Standards, The List of Grants

Posted at 05:01 AM ET, 05/08/2013

Eighth grader: What bothered me most about new Common Core test
By Valerie Strauss
A 14-year-old boy in New York details what he found so annoying about the new Common Core-aligned English test he and other students around the state just took.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:01 AM ET, 05/08/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core Tests, Standardized Tests, Worse Than Pineapple Test

Posted at 02:29 PM ET, 05/03/2013

Questions about the questions on new Common Core tests
By Valerie Strauss
Critics say there are problems with some of the questions on the new tests just given to students in New York.

By Valerie Strauss  |  02:29 PM ET, 05/03/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Are They Clearly Written?, Common Core Tests, Try To Answer Two of Them

Posted at 05:02 AM ET, 05/01/2013

Extreme Common Core rhetoric clouds serious debate
By Valerie Strauss
There's a lot of extreme talk about Common Core being voiced, and it's a problem because it it is clouding serious-minded criticism about the standards initiative and its implementation.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:02 AM ET, 05/01/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Clouds Serious Criticism, Common Core State Standards

Posted at 10:09 AM ET, 04/30/2013

AFT's Weingarten urges moratorium on high stakes linked to Common Core tests
By Valerie Strauss
AFT president Randi Weingarten says high-stakes tests are unfairly being given to students before teachers have had time to properly absorb and create curriculum around the Common Core standards.

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:09 AM ET, 04/30/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core Implementation Challenged, Common Core Standards, Randi Weingarten

Posted at 10:17 AM ET, 04/27/2013

And now, Girl Scout badges aligned to Common Core standards
By Valerie Strauss
There's nothing, it seems, in this school reform era that you can't align with standards -- even Girl Scout badges.

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:17 AM ET, 04/27/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, From Cadettes to Ambassadors, From Daisies to Ambassadors

Posted at 05:02 AM ET, 04/24/2013

Is the Common Core Standards initiative in trouble?
By Valerie Strauss
Education Secretary Arne Duncan recently met with Chamber of Commerce leaders and urged them to be more vocal and forceful in defending the Common Core State Standards. Why?

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:02 AM ET, 04/24/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, Some States Reconsidering

Posted at 10:11 AM ET, 04/21/2013

The basic business principles school reformers ignore
By Valerie Strauss
How the Common Core State Standards initiative violates basic business principles

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:11 AM ET, 04/21/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core Standards, They Violate Business Principles, Why Common Core is 'a mess'

Posted at 04:01 AM ET, 04/19/2013

Common Core Standards attacked by Republicans
By Valerie Strauss
Will new Republican efforts against on the Common Core State Standards destroy the bipartisanship that got them approved in more than 45 states?

By Valerie Strauss  |  04:01 AM ET, 04/19/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, Is Bipartisanship Over?

Posted at 11:47 PM ET, 04/07/2013

Principal warns parents: 'Don't buy the bunk' about new Common Core tests
By Valerie Strauss
Parents will soon be told whether their children are "on the road" to college readiness based on cut scores on tests of the new Common Core standards. But there is no evidence the scores will have any meaning.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:47 PM ET, 04/07/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, High-Stakes Tests, Questions About 'Cut Scores', Standardized Tests

Posted at 11:05 AM ET, 04/03/2013

The new kindergarten: Kids write 'informative' reports
By Valerie Strauss
Remember back in the olden days when kindergarteners used to be allowed to learn from playing? Look what they are doing now.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:05 AM ET, 04/03/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core, Curriculum, The Common Core

Posted at 12:32 PM ET, 04/02/2013

Why Common Core tests won't be what Arne Duncan promised
By Valerie Strauss
How much better will the next generation of standardized tests, aligned to the Common Core standards, really be?

By Valerie Strauss  |  12:32 PM ET, 04/02/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  After $360 Million, Common Core Standards, Standardized Tests

Posted at 12:01 PM ET, 03/20/2013

Common Core supporter: 'I see the opportunity being squandered'
By Valerie Strauss
A strong supporter of the Common Core says the implementation of the initiative is in trouble.

By Valerie Strauss  |  12:01 PM ET, 03/20/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, Implementation Problems

Posted at 05:28 PM ET, 03/15/2013

Acclaimed book 'recalled' from some Chicago school classrooms (update)
By Valerie Strauss
The American Library Association protests the removal of a Common Core test from some high school classrooms in Chicago.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:28 PM ET, 03/15/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  A Common Core literary text, Book Removal, Censorship

Posted at 10:45 AM ET, 02/13/2013

Former education commissioner blasts Common Core process -- update
By Valerie Strauss
A year after rocking the ed world by blasting standardized testing, Robert Scott, the former ed commissioner of Texas, now goes after the Common Core State Standards.

By Valerie Strauss  |  10:45 AM ET, 02/13/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  Common Core State Standards, Watch The Video

Posted at 11:15 AM ET, 01/17/2013

New questions on the Common Core Standards
By Valerie Strauss
Here is the third post in a debate between Yong Zhao and Marc Tucker about the Common Core State Standards. In this installment, Yong Zhao takes on Tucker's support of the standards.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:15 AM ET, 01/17/2013 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  A Debate, Common Core State Standards

Posted at 03:59 AM ET, 12/15/2012

Sandy Hook Elementary principal's recent tweets
By Valerie Strauss
Here are some of the recent tweets and retweets by Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, the principal of Sandy Hook Elementary School and a victim of the mass shooting there.

By Valerie Strauss  |  03:59 AM ET, 12/15/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Tags:  etc., On Common Core, Scho

Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 01/21/2011

Testing the Common Core Standards
By Valerie Strauss
A veteran of the standardized testing industry sets out to discover whether the Common Core Standards are "revolutionary" or whether they look a lot like standards states already have. Here's his report.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:00 AM ET, 01/21/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  academic benchmarks, common core standards, common standards, content standards, national standards, standardized testing, standardized testing industry, state standards, testing industry, todd farley, todd s. farley

Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 12/22/2010

The lowdown on standardized tests and how they are scored
By Valerie Strauss
If you think machines score all of the standardized tests kids take, guess again. Rather, an army of low-paid, poorly trained temps score them. Test scorers tell the tale.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:00 AM ET, 12/22/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  common core standards, how tests are scored, no child left behind, race to the top, standardized test industry, standardized test scoring, standardized tests, test industry, test scoring

Posted at 01:52 PM ET, 12/05/2010

When teachers are their own worst enemies
By Valerie Strauss
An educator/author argues that teachers, however unwittingly, helped create the accountability movement that is now "choking" them.

By Valerie Strauss  |  01:52 PM ET, 12/05/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  accountability movement, california standards test, common core standards, common standards, criterion-based tests, public schools, school reform, standardized test, standards movement, teachers

Posted at 05:00 PM ET, 11/05/2010

Montgomery County admits kids were pushed too hard in math
By Valerie Strauss
The highly regarded Montgomery County Public Schools now admits that it has been pushing too many kids into accelerated math when they weren't ready and will stop it. A lot of parents are going to lose bragging rights at cocktail parties.

By Valerie Strauss  |  05:00 PM ET, 11/05/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery County Public Schools | Tags:  accelerated math, common core standards, math, math programs, moco, moco schools, montgomery county public schools, montgomery county schools

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 09/15/2010

Mass personalization: Is this good for education?
By Valerie Strauss
The principle of “mass personalization” is straightforward: by gathering data on individual customers, a company can target its advertising. What would “mass personalization” look like in education?

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:00 AM ET, 09/15/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  National Standards, National Standards, National Standards | Tags:  common core standards, diana senechal, mass personalization, school reform

Posted at 03:00 PM ET, 09/13/2010

Obama ed policy lacks scientific support -- Willingham
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham calls into question President Obama's judgment on the administration's education policy, saying that it has no scientific support.

By Valerie Strauss  |  03:00 PM ET, 09/13/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  common core standards, daniel willingham, duncan and policy, duncan and reforms, naep, national assessment of educational progress, obama and education policy, obama and inaugural address, obama and school reform, president obama and education, race to the top, race to the top requirements, science and obama administration, teacher assessment

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 08/16/2010

Willingham: Can reformers control their own reforms?
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham, looking at Paul Peterson's book "Saving Schools," writes about education reformers and the problem they have historically encountered in keeping control of the reforms they launch. How this pattern will affect the Common Core standards is a big question, he says.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:00 AM ET, 08/16/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  common core standards, daniel willingham, national standards, paul peterson, paul peterson's book, saving schools, school reform

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 08/11/2010

The problem with ‘Race to the Top’ is the race
By Valerie Strauss
Diana Senechal writes that President Obama is correct when he says we need to shake things up to improve the schools. The problem is that we are shaking up the wrong things.

By Valerie Strauss  |  06:30 AM ET, 08/11/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  common core standards, diana senechal, obama and race to the top, obama and school reform, race to the top

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 08/09/2010

Willingham: What’s missing from Common Core standards (Part 3)
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham writes about taking the educational equivalent of the moon shot.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:00 AM ET, 08/09/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  common core standards, daniel willingham

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 08/02/2010

Willingham: What’s missing from Common Core standards plan (Part 2)
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham asks: "If the educational system has so many interacting parts, how can we ever know whether a change we make to part of the system is useful?" Then he answers it, two ways.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:00 AM ET, 08/02/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  Daniel Willingham, common core standards, national standards

Posted at 11:30 AM ET, 07/26/2010

Willingham: What’s missing from national standards plan (Part 1)
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham analyzes whether the Common Core standards for math and English language arts are likely to improve schooling over the next decade.

By Valerie Strauss  |  11:30 AM ET, 07/26/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  analysis and common core standareds, common core standards, criticism and common core standards, daniel willingham, national standards, no child left behind and legacy, what's missing from common core standards

Posted at 07:25 AM ET, 07/21/2010

Primer for ed reformers (or, it’s the curriculum, stupid!)
By Valerie Strauss
A curriculum expert says school reformers are ignoring this truth: "I say the familiar “core curriculum” in use in America’s schools and colleges is a problem-plagued, dysfunctional,19th Century relic that fits the 21st Century about as well as the first Model T Ford fits into I-75 traffic." And here's how to fix it.

By Valerie Strauss  |  07:25 AM ET, 07/21/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  changing the curriculum, common core standards, curriculum reform, how to design curriculum, how to reform a school, marion brady, national standards, primer for reforms, race to the top, school reform, the answer sheet

Posted at 12:00 PM ET, 06/07/2010

Will new standards mean better-educated kids? -- Willingham
By Valerie Strauss
Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham looks at the final version of the Common Core standards for math and English Language Arts and analyzes their likely impact on learning over the next decade. Will students be better educated? From a quick read the standards look pretty good, but most would agree that high-quality standards are necessary but not sufficient for positive impact.

By Valerie Strauss  |  12:00 PM ET, 06/07/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham, Daniel Willingham | Tags:  Common Core standards, Daniel Willingham, content standards, national standards

Posted at 09:15 AM ET, 04/30/2010

Are ed reformers ignoring American values?
By Valerie Strauss
By Marion Brady. Perhaps most curious of all is the present education reform effort’s disregard for deep-seated American values. With the possible exception of Australia, no other country matches America in professed admiration for the non-standard person....Why, then, is there near-universal enthusiasm for national standards?

By Valerie Strauss  |  09:15 AM ET, 04/30/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  Common Core Standards, Marion Brady, No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, american values, guest bloggers, national standards, national standards and american values, schools and american values

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 04/06/2010

E.D. Hirsch Jr.: Common Core Standards could revolutionize reading instruction
By Valerie Strauss
By E.D. Hirsch, Jr. The Common Core Standards represent a fundamental and long overdue rethinking of the dominant process-approach to U.S. literacy instruction. To appreciate what a radical transformation it represents, one needs to understand how children are now schooled in literacy.

By Valerie Strauss  |  06:30 AM ET, 04/06/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags:  Common Core Standards, E.D. Hirsch, guest bloggers, reading

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 03/10/2010

The problem(s) with the Common Core standards
By Valerie Strauss
Wanting kids around the country to know the same important skills and concepts makes sense. But there are problems with the national Common Core Standards in math and English that are being released today

By Valerie Strauss  |  06:00 AM ET, 03/10/2010 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  National Standards | Tags:  Common Core standards, national standards